The 2017 River Conservation and Fly Fishing Youth Camp will be on June 11-16 at Bar N I Ranch near Weston Colorado. Please apply for the 2017 camp with the application below and submit completed application to Jeff Florence, JFlorence@tu.org by April 15th, 2017.

The camp is designed to educate 14 to 18 year old students on the importance of coldwater conservation and provide hands-on fly fishing instruction. Approximately 20 students are selected each year, based on their qualifications and a written essay on why they would like to attend the camp.

Montie youth camp 2016One 2016 camper, Montie Pons-Benedict said in a hand written letter "My favorite part was either learning how to tell how healthy a stream was or camping out. I also liked getting to know the other campers. I could tell if a stream is healthy by how many aquatic bugs there are in the stream. I found a lot of stone flies up there which means that you have a healthy stream. I loved your camp and hope to go again next year."

"Our hope is that kids who attend our camp today will become the conservation leaders of tomorrow," said Shawn Bratt, a veteran youth camp counselor and winner of national Trout Unlimited's Outstanding Youth Education Volunteer. "It's important for these students to understand the value of healthy streams and clean water and how they relate to our everyday lives. The camp curriculum has been structured to provide the necessary foundation for that education."

In addition, the camp will include hands-on classes such as fly tying, fly casting, streamside ethics, angling literature, streamside botany, wader safety and survival, and the evolution of an angler. Students will also participate in a watershed project to repair habitat in a nearby stream.The River Conservation and Fly Fishing Youth Camp includes faculty from various environmental fields and state agencies such as the Colorado Division of Wildlife, Department of Environmental Protection and National Forest Service. The cost to attend the six-day camp is $450.

Parents will receive an information packet which contains several forms that require a parental signature, after the student has been selected for the camp.All camp personnel undergo a background check through the national Trout Unlimited organization.Campers "camp out" in tents under close supervision, and are expected to bring proper equipment.Flight leaders supervise the camp and both male and females are represented.Food is catered by local company and all is cooked on the site.